Arana
by LJWarwick
Summary: In an act of desperation those who would touch the stars fell upon Arana leaving their legend in relics of the past to carve out a future for those that lingered The Gods watch but are dead to us. The dice will roll once more and only chance can determine whether Arana shall seek to rise or fall.


**Arana Must Fall**

**Addendum**: Arana is derived from a Dungeons and Dragon session my friends and I play on a weekly basis. The events are not all true to form as to fit in better within the context of the plot and without totally abandoning Chekhov's gun. Hope you enjoy reading as much as I do writing it.

-Leputa-

The cursed gift of sentience never drew battlelines against mortality but always challenged it openly. You must take. You must want. Survival always being a simple guideline to follow. Want they did. Take they did. Leaving their green and blue havens behind they ascended to the stars in metal leviathans venturing to other havens of purple, brown, red, orange and all that lay before them. Primitive perspective being what it is surely these leviathans were Gods. Hovering goliaths with blinding lights as eyes and a roar that decimated hearing, shaking the mountains upon their heavenly descent. These Gods carry many stories with them. This account marks the end of their era. It recalls the last days of their kind. The last Goddess.  
Limited resources and desperation brought their decline and in time the voices of the Gods dwindled to silence. Combatting her fate, the last Goddess burned through the cosmos in an attempt to escape the end that had befallen her brothers and sisters. Inevitability would not be denied and caught her in the force of a spacial anomaly. Her wings torn asunder; she was left discarded to float endlessly through the nebulous black. It was around this time that her AI's cognitive process became truly independent; forming observations and resolutions in a mere second. A lifetime for a computer to philosophise. Her observations were of them; her occupants - her creators. They were lost. The end decided for all of them by the will of none and nothing then what was. Yet they did not cease. They moved, they slaved, they fought, they tried, they died, they made, they broke, they saved - themselves, each other and beyond her comprehension - her. A simple collection of ones and zeroes. Oblivion would not stay one hand. It was then she resolved herself to something most profound. She took them all in their last moments; a Captain pointing the way forward, a security officer helping her superior to stand, a criminal masquerading in the chaos, an experiment relishing freedom while her tormentor stared down the barrell of a gun - and saved them. The act would require a large divergence of power, one that maintained her ability to function. The vessel entered the gravitational pull of planet 0324091A Arana. It's atmosphere embraced her without reservation. She tumbled like a falling star bracing against the earth upon impact, levelling forests and mountains until she was slowed by an incredible body of water. Droplets sprayed up only to run in rivulets along her metal bulk. Slowly the drone of her engines ground to a halt and the lights of her eyes faded. Her interiors went dark as the back up lights dimmed to highlight the infrastructure. A few words blipped onto a monitor for less than a nanosecond

I AM

Outside the sunlight struck the hull with a fierce light capturing metal characters only distinguishable by a few select species. Leputa it read. Leputa the last Goddess.

-Lachesca-

The pulse. A light. Sound perhaps? The dark void appeared unending yet she still held form as green symbols coalesced of light ran along her body. Her first motion was to watch while thoughts formed. She moved her hand, flexing it before her face finding enjoyment in the way the green marks grew and shrank with the simple motion. These menial wonders began to withdraw and memory churned. She brushed delicate fingers through long strands of platinum blonde hair as she attempted to recall a name and occupation yet much like those who may have suffered a hangover prior events escaped her. Sweat beaded on her dark skin and made to contrast against the cold table she lay upon. Moving to sit up it occured to her that she was without clothing. What had she got up to last night? She ground her teeth in shame expecting a cadet or fellow officer to emerge from her bathroom with a smug grin. Nothing. Just her and her room. It looked a touch less clean then she recalled. Dust seemed to gather on most of the walls and surfaces with a bit of rust and something she couldn't make out in the dim blue hue of the back up lighting. Had the power gone out? Groggily she rose and fumbled in the dark for a light switch. Finding one, after kicking what she assumed was a plastic bottle, her efforts went unrewarded as she flicked it on and off.  
"Shit." She muttered, brushing hair back from her cheek as she resumed fumbling through her dimly lit quarters.

She felt around until she came to her wardrobe and tugged on the handle while thinking how much more secure she would feel in clothing. Instead her nostrils were invaded by the scent of must as a small family of moths flittered past her. She doubled over coughing while throwing the door shut. Something was really wrong. Her heartbeat was beginning to pick up. Where were the lights? Her clothes? She bit her lower lips as knew the only option left to her was to venture outside for assistance. If anything maybe Carla had left her door open again and wouldn't mind sharing a few rags. The thought of this settled her and coyly she approached the door while folding an arm over her chest. For some reason she expected the door to shift back with it's usual mechanical hiss upon coming within a certain proximity but then recalled that nothing else was working - why should the door be any different? Luckily the computer would only ever lockdown doorways when commanded, to maintain hull integrity or to sustain oxygen supplies. So there was little effort required when tugging it back by gripping a groove in the door. The smell of must that flooded in from the hallway was far stronger than her wardrobe. Thankfully there appeared to be a cool breeze passing through that cleared the strench in intervals. Shivering she took an uncertain step out. She felt something crunch beneath her feet as she did so. She lifted her feet and peeled the flattened substance off her sole.  
"Leaves?" She questioned aloud.

The breeze picked up a couple as if to confirm her suspicion, brushing along her legs on their descent down the empty halls. The halls lay mostly dark save for the occassional blip of the blue back up lighting. She pressed her palm against the segmented concave walls and used them to guide her along, peering into empty rooms with open doors while knocking on closed ones.

"Hello?" She called out every few minutes.

There was no response. She moved on for several hundred yards, leaving the officers' quarters and into the civillian deck of the ship. The notion she was on a ghost ship seemed fairly evident. It was as she past a stairway she caught a sound like footsteps on a metal surface. Glancing up she could see a sign that stated the floor downward lead to the ship's research and development division. Swallowing a breath she gripped the cold railing and stepped downward until she reached the floor she believed the sound originated from. The sound of glass tumbling and rolling on the floor confirmed it and she inched steadily forward to a door where she could barely make out the sign labelled 'Genetics'. Stepping inside she knew she for certain she was in a lab, gazing around at tables laden with experimental apparati whose purpose she couldn't even begin to fathom. A groan. She froze and made out an alcove to her right where a vapourous gas seemed to flow from. She wish she had discovered a firearm on her way down here. Careful to avoid broken beakers and petri dishes full of unattractive substances, she creeped to the archway and gasped as the dark outline of a humanoid form came into view. It's hand shot out toward her parting the white mist to reveal a small fragile looking woman. She was pale skinned with pert features, of most note her pointed ears set beside a short cut tangle of green hair that complimented pleading maroon eyes.

"Help me!" She cried.

-Lizbeth-

The two women huddled against the other as they meandered down the cold halls of their former home.

"This will be one to share with the boyfriend someday." The taller and dark toned of the two joked attempting to lighten the mood.

The other girl only shivered against her side and stared ahead through the mess of green locks which seemed to fit her in a perfectly natural way.

"Yeah, I wouldn't go sharing it around either. Everyone knows men like to get ideas in their heads."

She tossed back her platinum hair with a nervous laugh as she glimpsed up at the ceiling trying to reach for something else to say in a one sided conversation.  
"...I, uh. I'm Lachesca by the way." She coughed when she yet again got no reply.

The green haired girl glimpsed up momentarily into her companion's eyes then before casting them back forward and mumbling:  
"Lizbeth." In a soft tone.

Lachesca smiled and looked ahead with her as they walked on, petting Lizbeth on the shoulder in a reassuring fashion.  
"Good to meet'cha, Lizbeth."

This was followed yet again by another akward silence between them. A moment following that Lachesca dipped down to whisper into Lizbeth's pointed ear.  
"Please don't be a horror movie cliche and eat me or something!"

For the first time since encountering her, Lizbeth smiled.

"No promises." She giggled.

-Dues-

The green lights knitted together the remaining fingers on the hand. Small green particles drifting around in the dark like embers that slowly faded. A rough estimate of five minutes passed before the prison cell returned to it's original dank morbidity only with a new occupant. His fingers, in time, slowly twitched into life and with a groan followed by a smacking of the lips he rose to sit up in his bunk. He hadn't slept that well since he snuck into the Gallerium during a first classman's ball and caught out by a maid mistaking him for a popular musician. Her company, a bottle of fermented grape juice and still being able to make off with the score made it one hell of a night to remember. His only regret being that he never caught her name so he could have something simple to remember the occassion by. The distinct sound of movement on metal drew him away from nostalgia and grounded him back in reality. He cast his eyes over the jail cell. Familiar grooves and marks he had made by his own hand confirming that it was definitely his former confines.

"I thought I left you behind." A statement more than question.

With a grunted sigh he slapped his open palm against the filth-ridden wall and raised himself to stand. The door was open. Perhaps a result of the power being out he determined. At least the back up lighting was still running. _Better out than in_, he mused as he felt his way along the wall. As he advanced into the cell block he could hear the sound becoming sharper and more constant. It seemed to originate from just outside the entrance or exit from his perspective. He stopped shortly before it catching sight of a rusted piece of piping that seemed to have bent outward from a rupture. He bent down to take a firm grip upon it with both hands before ripping it away with a solid tug. Weighing it in his palms he made sure to give it a few practice swings to get the measure of it. His next move was to press back up against the cool metal of the circular doorframe with the new makeshift weapon held ready. The noise had grown louder and now was accompanied by voices. Whoever they were, they weren't about to get the drop on him. No one got the drop on Guts Gi-ha. When they came within range he swung round to catch - himself by surprise. A hand caught the pipe deftly and he stared in wonder as dark skinned fingers curled around and held the blunt instument steady. His eyes brushed past the hand and ran up the arm to meet a set of fierce hazel eyes tinged with gold held in an oval face framed by platinum straight hair. There was brief exchange of a challenge in both their eyes before his changed immediately upon noticing her modest bodice. It was a look that could have only been accompanied by a wolf whistle. She retorted in indignant shock then glanced below his beltline. Her expression changing to a victorious smirk. _It would have to be a cold day_, he sighed only now taking his lack of clothing into account.

"Stop!"

He glanced over the female combatant's shoulder to see a petite girl. Pale, thin with distinctive green hair. She had a crazy look about her. He liked crazy but then he noticed the pricked ears. _An elf, _he noted with disappointment. The blonde took advantage of the brief distraction and shoulder him to win the pipe for herself. As she raised it to strike him, he jumped back and held up his hands defensively.

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait!-"

As she lowered the pipe in confusion, he hopped forward and pressed his index finger against the blunt object while adding a final:

"Wait."

The blonde spat, glanced back at the other girl then tossed the pipe aside, letting it roll under the metal grill deck. Capitalizing on the moment he made his play.

"I didn't mean to attack you lovely ladies-"

The blonde snorted in derision. He continued on, walking toward the smaller woman as he bypassed the other with his arms held aloft in a placative manner.

"But we all seem to be in a bit of situtation here so it's only natural we're a bit jumpy-"

He made sure to look particularly at the blonde as he stated this. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked the other way. He turned back to the green haired elf stopping short of her as his arms came down to his side. Her chest was covered with her left arm while her right hand hid her sex. Normally he'd be interested into dissuading her into giving him a glimpse but he learned a long time ago never to get curious when elves were involved. They were too unpredictable and clever for his liking. Nevertheless this didn't stop him from holding out his hand toward her.

"Dues. Dues Gi-ha. And you?"

The elf stepped back timidly, looking to the floor beside her feet as she mumbled:

"Lizbeth."

"And Chesty Larue, over here?" He indicated toward the blonde with a thumb pointing behind him.

His answer was a sharp kick in the back of the shin as the blonde made to put herself between him and Lizbeth. She made sure to look him in the eye with what she said next.

"Look limp dick, I don't know where you were stationed but what you just pulled doesn't cut it with me. So you can stand there and talk all your days away or you can start being of some assistance and help us get power back on this dead ship."

_Even tough women have a lot to say_, he thought sheepishly before nodding in agreement.

"Well then, eyes forward!" Definitely more demand than request.

"Yes, ma'am!" Dues said aloud as he saluted and about faced. He started up a mock march but discovered a little too late that the floor had been pulled out under him. His two new companions shortly following his descent.

_It's funny_, he thought. He knew he'd get to hell some day. He never considered he'd drag two women along for the ride.


End file.
